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Profile Evaluation

by dhody1986 » Tue Nov 01, 2011 10:41 am
Hi
I am an Indian working in IT industry. My profile details are enlisted below. Requesting you to please advise if the below mentioned schools are far of my reach or I have a shot.
Age - 26 years
Nationality - Indian
GMAT - 730 (QUANT - 49 , ENGLISH - 40 , AWA 4/6)
Undergraduate GPA - 7.75/10
Education -
Work Experience - 42 months at Tata Consultancy Services. Worked on Payments module of a Core banking software and payment systems of 3 different countries spread across two continents. Handled significant responsibilities within 2 years which include co-ordination among teams of different applications spread across various geographies , supervision of off-shore software testing related activities , knowledge impartment and guidance in payment systems to a team of six associates.
Certifications -
Certified Financial Planner conducted by FPSB , India
Certification in Basics of Financial Markets conducted by National Stock Exchange India
Certification in Basics of Commercial Banking conducted by National Stock Exchange India
Extracurriculars - Not much to write about apart from successfully completing the 14 km Bangalore Marathon , 2011
My target B-Schools are
US - UCLA: Anderson , University of Virginia: Darden , Vanderbilt University:Owen , Emory University: Goizueta
Canada - York University:Schulich , Queen School of Business , University of British Columbia:Sauder
Singapore - Nanyang Business School , National University of Singapore School of Business
Please advise if I stand a chance in these schools. Also will my lower AWA score impact negatively in my application and if yes what corrective action should I take to counter it.
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by essaysnark » Tue Nov 01, 2011 11:13 am
Hi dhody1986 -- congrats on completing the marathon - that's about as hard as the GMAT!! And congrats also on the strong GMAT score.

In general, for most schools on your list, the lower AWA will not be a huge issue. But it is a blemish, as you know. It puts you in a tricky situation: If your application essays are too good then the adcom may suspect you've had a lot of help with them. So, if you do get advice or counseling on the essays, make sure that you don't have them too heavily edited by a consultant. (This is important advice for anyone -- if someone else does too much editing, then the work ceases to be your own -- but it's even more important for you, given the AWA score.)

We rarely recommend retesting the GMAT in order to raise the AWA score alone, and that's probably not warranted here. Many of the best programs are looking more closely at the AWA as part of the rest of the profile, simply because the entire process has become so competitive overall. This is the only weakness you seem to have in your profile, and it's not a bad place to be weak, so it's not a huge concern. We definitely do not recommend writing an optional essay about it. It is what it is, and as long as the rest of your application demonstrates your skills appropriately and you should be fine.

The best way to choose a school -- and the best way to position yourself strongly in essays for that school -- is to focus in on your career goals. You haven't mentioned anything about that but it sounds like maybe you want to move into finance? We're guessing that, based on the certifications you have. The schools will evaluate your candidacy based on the profile "stats" (GMAT/GPA etc.) but also on school fit, and career goals is one major aspect of that.

You are most certainly qualified to go for any of the schools you've named; it will be up to you to present compelling stories in the essays themselves, and articulate a viable reason for choosing each individual school (and each individual country, too), in order to have a fighting chance at these. That's how you will differentiate yourself from the many other candidates who are so similar to you in applying.

If you want to offer more on your career goals or you have other questions that we can help with, just let us know!! You have the basics done for sure, and it will be about developing a strong message for each of these (each app is a lot of work, BTW - you'll need to be working on all of these essays starting immediately if you're trying for Round 2!!)

Good luck with it!
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by throughmba » Tue Nov 01, 2011 11:21 am
ok
I am very positive about your profile. Its great to go. The hygiene factors are hygienic. GMAT is good. AWA can hide behind verbal score.

You have to whiz past the IT-guy-from-India image and dont let be a disadvantage. People have to branch their profile in such a way that they seem more than candidates of similar identity.

Hold this identity strongly and then show me how you can be marked differently. You should, for choice,pick an anecdote that reinforces your overall positioning. Anything which could conveniently take you close to subtle impressions of leadership (a 42 month experience can make the Adcom think, have you led people or any group or any flock).

I would have tried to find a story from your life that also casts you in the role of leader (leadership is reflective in a lot of different behavioral aspects).

Its like first raising the moulds(with the available clay) and then tuning them, sharpening them to put the message across.

With this verbal score, I wont worry about this AWA. Its good to defend if not kill.
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